WO2001001800A1 - Brushes - Google Patents
Brushes Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- WO2001001800A1 WO2001001800A1 PCT/IB2000/000381 IB0000381W WO0101800A1 WO 2001001800 A1 WO2001001800 A1 WO 2001001800A1 IB 0000381 W IB0000381 W IB 0000381W WO 0101800 A1 WO0101800 A1 WO 0101800A1
- Authority
- WO
- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- bristles
- brush
- toothbrush
- construction according
- handle
- Prior art date
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B5/00—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware
- A46B5/002—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions
- A46B5/0054—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions designed to allow relative positioning of the head to body
- A46B5/0075—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions designed to allow relative positioning of the head to body being adjustable and stable during use
- A46B5/0083—Mechanical joint allowing adjustment in at least one plane
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B5/00—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware
- A46B5/002—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions
- A46B5/0054—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions designed to allow relative positioning of the head to body
- A46B5/0075—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions designed to allow relative positioning of the head to body being adjustable and stable during use
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B9/00—Arrangements of the bristles in the brush body
- A46B9/08—Supports or guides for bristles
- A46B9/10—Adjustable supports
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B2200/00—Brushes characterized by their functions, uses or applications
- A46B2200/10—For human or animal care
- A46B2200/1066—Toothbrush for cleaning the teeth or dentures
Definitions
- This invention relates to brushes, particularly toothbrushes .
- Brushes are known in which the effective hardness of the brush can be varied.
- One way of doing this is to surround tufts of bristles set in a brush base with an apertured plate which may lie against the base in which the tufts are anchored, or which may be moved away from it along the tufts by a certain distance, so increasing the hardness of the brush by reducing the length of freely bendable bristle which extends from the free end of the bristles to the apertured plate.
- British Patent Specifications 1604281 and 1604878 disclose toothbrushes of such a construction while British Patent Specification 1335639 discloses a variety of brushes which can be adjusted in hardness by a movable plate.
- variable hardness brushes may be retained, but with manufacturing simplicity imparted by providing the hardness-varying mechanism in the form of a comb or combs which can be inserted laterally into the gaps between adjacent lines or rows of tufts set in a brush head.
- Such an arrangement provides a number of further unforeseen advantages, which are detailed below.
- the bristle adjustment means are arranged so that their distance from the base of the brush head bearing the bristles is variable along the direction of the bristles, whereby the hardness of the brush is variable.
- the bristle adjustment means are arranged to oscillate, so that the bristles are caused to vibrate. The oscillation may be reciprocatory or rotary.
- the bristle adjustment means are arranged to cause the bristles to bend, so that the angle of the bristles with respect to the base of the brush head is varied.
- a brush in accordance with the invention is characterised by a pair of comb members swivellably mounted on the brush handle such that they may be swivelled from a position in which the teeth of the comb are not engaged with the bristles of the brush to one in which they are.
- the brush consists of a handle to which the swivellable comb members are pivoted and a disposable bristle- carrying head. This is particularly valuable in connection with toothbrushes which often lose their shape and stiffness through use and which accordingly need to be regularly replaced.
- the head may be exchanged for a new one while retaining the handle and combs which, as will be appreciated, is relatively more costly to manufacture.
- the benefits of variable hardness may be achieved without resort to building them into a brush head which, when it wears out, has to be discarded.
- the mechanism for moving the combs relative to the head is, of course, likewise built into the handle and comb structure, so the head can be very plain and manufactured at a cost rendering it easily disposable without qualm.
- each comb member is swivellable from a position in which the teeth are engaged in the array of tufts of bristles to one in which the combination is entirely folded into the handle.
- the mechanism for moving the comb(s) toward or away from the base in which the bristles are set may be any convenient mechanism and is one which is preferably robust while nevertheless being easy (and accordingly inexpensive) to manufacture.
- toothbrushes in accordance with the invention have a pair of combs which can be swung to engage between the bristle tufts on the head of the toothbrush from opposite sides and which, when so engaged, are engaged with one another, optionally with a clipping action, so that the inter-engaged comb teeth can be easily moved as a unit.
- the base of the brush head in which the tufts of bristles are set may be configured with grooves in the spaces between the bristles, the grooves being dimensioned to receive the teeth of the comb member (s).
- the bristle adjustment means may be designed so as to cause the interengaged comb teeth to move relative to the bristles if the overall pressure applied to the bristle array exceeds a certain threshold in a fashion so as to reduce the overall hardness of the brush.
- This may be achieved by a variety of design solutions, the particular construction and mechanism employed depending on the type of brush in question.
- Such a feature is of value in circumstances where in the intended use of the brush, it is desirable to limit the brushing effect to a certain extent or degree.
- One particular area in which this is of value is that of toothbrushes. Over recent years, it has emerged that a major contributory factor to gingival recession is that of over-hard brushing using too hard a toothbrush.
- toothbrushes in accordance with the invention may be arranged to retain the adjustability of hardness features discussed above while being rendered less likely to cause gingival recession if improperly used by the ability of the adjustment means to move back towards the brush head carrying the bristles if too great pressure is applied to the overall array of bristles.
- the amount of give if excess pressure is applied may vary linearly with the amount of excess pressure, or, for example non-linearly, so that the hardness of the brush overall remains the same until a certain threshold pressure is applied, whereupon it suddenly becomes rather softer, the hardness returning automatically to the previous setting once the excess pressure is removed.
- Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view looking end on to the bristles of the disposable head
- Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view of the brush showing a pair of swivellable combs
- Figure 6 is a view of the brush with the bristles omitted
- Figure 7 is a partial view of the handle showing a hardness varying actuator mechanism
- Figure 4 shows the combs 20, 21 which may be inserted laterally into the array of bristles. As can be seen, these are pivoted at 24, 25 respectively to the handle 1 and may be swung back to allow insertion of the head into handle 1 or its removal into the position shown in Figure 4.
- the comb 20 may be folded back into handle 1 passing through slot 16, and comb 21 passing through slot 15.
- Figure 5 shows details of the construction of the two combs 20 and 21 apart for the sake of clarity, and the bottom of Figure 5 shows the two members together and in a section transverse to the teeth of each comb. As can be seen by inspecting Figure 5, teeth 28 shown in cross- section are part of comb 20, while teeth 29 are part of comb 21.
- FIG. 7 to 9 there show more details of the mechanism for adjusting the effective hardness of the brush.
- actuation member 12 attached to actuation member 12 is an elongate rod 30 which extends forwardly from actuating member 12 through an internal slot in the handle.
- the rod 30 is wholly retracted within handle 1. This is the situation shown in the side view of the brush shown in Figure 8. If, however, the actuation member 12 is pushed forwards, i.e.
- Figure 10 shows an alternative embodiment in which instead of a sliding mechanism with an actuation member 12, the combs are pivoted around an axis 40 and can be moved as a unit away from the base 4, i.e. up the bristles 3, by depressing a bridge member 41, which joins the two combs together, in the downward direction as seen in the upper portion of Figure 10.
- a spring 43 is mounted in the end of handle 1 to bias the pair of combs to a position as shown in upper half of Figure 10.
- the combs may be made of resilient plastics material and may be formed of high quality engineering material so that they do not easily suffer damage. They may have formations on them formed by moulding, pressing or machining enabling them to be clipped together or released from one another, thus improving the integrity of the slotted member formed by the two inter-engaged combs with the teeth of each comb lying between a row of bristle tufts on the brush head.
- the sides of the teeth of the combs may be serrated to improve the engagement of the teeth in the array of tufts of bristles.
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
AU35713/00A AU3571300A (en) | 1999-03-30 | 2000-03-30 | Brushes |
EP00914318A EP1171015A1 (en) | 1999-03-30 | 2000-03-30 | Brushes |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GB9907349.6 | 1999-03-30 | ||
GB9907349A GB2348358A (en) | 1999-03-30 | 1999-03-30 | Brush e.g. toothbrush : bristle adjustment |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
WO2001001800A1 true WO2001001800A1 (en) | 2001-01-11 |
WO2001001800A8 WO2001001800A8 (en) | 2001-03-29 |
Family
ID=10850674
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/IB2000/000381 WO2001001800A1 (en) | 1999-03-30 | 2000-03-30 | Brushes |
Country Status (5)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP1171015A1 (en) |
AU (1) | AU3571300A (en) |
GB (1) | GB2348358A (en) |
WO (1) | WO2001001800A1 (en) |
ZA (1) | ZA200109039B (en) |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
CN108464774A (en) * | 2018-03-30 | 2018-08-31 | 深圳市奈士迪技术研发有限公司 | A kind of sweeping robot with brush head self-cleaning function |
Families Citing this family (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP2436283B1 (en) * | 2010-09-29 | 2016-08-24 | Braun GmbH | Brush head manufacturing method |
CN102894649A (en) * | 2012-09-18 | 2013-01-30 | 无锡莱吉特信息科技有限公司 | Toothbrush |
CN104433165A (en) * | 2014-11-25 | 2015-03-25 | 陈伟群 | Multipurpose toothbrush |
CN104433168A (en) * | 2014-11-26 | 2015-03-25 | 陈伟群 | Multifunctional toothbrush |
Citations (11)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE269112C (en) * | ||||
US1627634A (en) * | 1924-06-18 | 1927-05-10 | Andrew Page | Brush |
GB1335639A (en) | 1971-02-18 | 1973-10-31 | Schlerf Coronet Werke | Adjustable-hardness brushes |
US4109338A (en) | 1975-10-06 | 1978-08-29 | Mertes Richard H | Broom and dustpan combination |
FR2390127A1 (en) * | 1977-05-12 | 1978-12-08 | Blendax Werke Schneider Co | TOOTHBRUSH |
GB1602481A (en) | 1977-02-10 | 1981-11-11 | Smedlund K H | Garbage collection device |
GB1604878A (en) | 1977-07-01 | 1981-12-16 | Blendax Werke Schneider Co | Toothbrush |
US4393535A (en) | 1981-03-17 | 1983-07-19 | Paul Kunz | Adjustable brush |
US5142726A (en) | 1991-04-03 | 1992-09-01 | Mann Robert F | Adjustable bristle length toothbrush |
US5350248A (en) * | 1993-12-21 | 1994-09-27 | Chen Anselm V K | Toothbrush with extendible brushing element |
US5357644A (en) * | 1993-08-02 | 1994-10-25 | Theriault Bertrand R | Adjustable toothbrush |
-
1999
- 1999-03-30 GB GB9907349A patent/GB2348358A/en not_active Withdrawn
-
2000
- 2000-03-30 EP EP00914318A patent/EP1171015A1/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2000-03-30 WO PCT/IB2000/000381 patent/WO2001001800A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 2000-03-30 AU AU35713/00A patent/AU3571300A/en not_active Abandoned
-
2001
- 2001-11-01 ZA ZA200109039A patent/ZA200109039B/en unknown
Patent Citations (11)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE269112C (en) * | ||||
US1627634A (en) * | 1924-06-18 | 1927-05-10 | Andrew Page | Brush |
GB1335639A (en) | 1971-02-18 | 1973-10-31 | Schlerf Coronet Werke | Adjustable-hardness brushes |
US4109338A (en) | 1975-10-06 | 1978-08-29 | Mertes Richard H | Broom and dustpan combination |
GB1602481A (en) | 1977-02-10 | 1981-11-11 | Smedlund K H | Garbage collection device |
FR2390127A1 (en) * | 1977-05-12 | 1978-12-08 | Blendax Werke Schneider Co | TOOTHBRUSH |
GB1604878A (en) | 1977-07-01 | 1981-12-16 | Blendax Werke Schneider Co | Toothbrush |
US4393535A (en) | 1981-03-17 | 1983-07-19 | Paul Kunz | Adjustable brush |
US5142726A (en) | 1991-04-03 | 1992-09-01 | Mann Robert F | Adjustable bristle length toothbrush |
US5357644A (en) * | 1993-08-02 | 1994-10-25 | Theriault Bertrand R | Adjustable toothbrush |
US5350248A (en) * | 1993-12-21 | 1994-09-27 | Chen Anselm V K | Toothbrush with extendible brushing element |
Cited By (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
CN108464774A (en) * | 2018-03-30 | 2018-08-31 | 深圳市奈士迪技术研发有限公司 | A kind of sweeping robot with brush head self-cleaning function |
CN108464774B (en) * | 2018-03-30 | 2020-09-01 | 江西小布教育科技有限公司 | Robot of sweeping floor with brush head self-cleaning function |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
AU3571300A (en) | 2001-01-22 |
GB9907349D0 (en) | 1999-05-26 |
GB2348358A (en) | 2000-10-04 |
EP1171015A1 (en) | 2002-01-16 |
WO2001001800A8 (en) | 2001-03-29 |
ZA200109039B (en) | 2002-11-01 |
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